A/N: I am sincerely sorry for the wait, you know, packing, family stuff, and moving can take up a lot of time! Anyways, this lovely chapter is a mix of two suggestions submitted by serialkiller13 and Mystique6! It was really fun to write, and I hope you enjoy it! :D I do not own the Avengers or Loki.
It was a Friday, and the S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters was buzzing with activity – literally. A low frequency that sounded suspiciously like a G had been buzzing all morning. Nick Fury sighed in annoyance as he looked over the neatly organized folders that had appeared on his desk (probably thanks to Agent Coulson). After reading through the plethora of profiles of all the villains that they had had contact with, Fury grumbled something about not having enough staff.
"It appears as though your hands are quite full Director." A smooth voice echoed throughout his office. Fury simply glared at the intruder.
"And I'm supposed to assume you're here to help, Loki." The God of Mischief smirked and approached the director's desk, delicately tracing over the folders once they were within reach. Fury eyed him with distrust.
"'Help' is a relative term. I am here simply because I find myself in need of entertainment."
"The great 'King of Everything' is bored? Is taking over other peoples' worlds not enough for a guy like you?" Loki looked genuinely offended.
"If you must know, your Avengers have gone off to battle leaving me here, alone," he said in a godly huff. Fury raised his eyebrow. Loki looked more annoyed than him at the situation. "And I am to vow that I will not destroy, harm, or attempt to subjugate anything or anyone."
"I'll buy that when I have two eyes."
"That could be arranged." Loki was locked into a stare-off with the S.H.I.E.L.D. director for a few moments before Fury got an idea. The god was a tad unnerved at the sight of the grin that appeared on Fury's face.
"Why don't you and I go for a walk," he said as he quickly stood and pulled the Trickster out of his office. Everyone gave them a weird look as Nick Fury half dragged Loki down a few long hallways. "Stark says you have a certain affection towards kids, is that right?"
"I may in fact be drawn to some of Midgard's infants, but I'd hardly call it an 'affection'," Loki spat as he was dragged around another corner.
"That's good to hear, because we need someone to look after a few of the new recruits," Fury said as he unceremoniously shoved the god into a room with glass walls. Loki had no time to question the director before he heard the familiar cry of a baby. He slowly turned and was met with the sight of about twenty-five or so babies and toddlers.
"If you so much as think of harming any of them, I won't hesitate to taze you and play with these children while you drool on the carpet." Loki's brow furrowed as Coulson's voice reached his ears from across the room. The S.H.I.E.L.D. agent was rocking back and forth in a rocking chair while feeding an infant with a bottle.
"I killed you…..and yet you live."
"Funny how that works." The God of Mischief smirked and attempted to take in his surroundings.
"What is all this?"
"These children show promise for the future of the world – they all have special abilities." Loki slowly knelt down until he was eye level with many of the children.
"I was unaware that mortals could possess such power at such a young age," he said thoughtfully before one of the older ones waddled over to him.
"Lo-llll-loookey!" the young boy said in recognition. Loki immediately had a bad feeling – if a child as young as this one knew who he was it was only because of bad reasons. Sure enough, the boy's eyes glowed a fierce red and the god was suddenly thrown across the room. The glass wall creaked loudly as Loki crashed into it. Coulson smiled proudly as the Trickster landed face-first on the floor with a grunt of pain. "Bad!" the young boy yelled, pointing at the god. Loki inwardly cringed; why did everyone always have to assume that he was up to something terrible, or still a villain?
"Tiberius, while I appreciate your heroic actions, Mr. Laufeyson has already faced his punishments, am I correct Mr. Laufeyson?" Coulson chimed in.
"Yes, I was punished and have since given up villainy. And wherever did you hear of that name, Son of Coul?" Loki asked, giving the agent a piercing look.
"It is in your file, courtesy of Mr. Odinson." The god sighed as he pulled himself into a sitting position – he would have words with his brother about privacy at a later point. A girl, no older than twenty-two months, quickly waddled over to Loki who eyed her suspiciously. She carefully climbed into his lap – much to his discomfort – and thrust a small pointed fist at his chest.
"…Hhhh-hh….Heee….Heartttt!" she finally managed happily. Being no fool, the Trickster understood; this little girl could see the good in him. She carefully hugged him, and he slowly returned it somewhat in a state of shock.
"Her name is Taryn. We believe that she possesses the ability to see the future," Coulson explained calmly as he watched said girl continue to cuddle up with the god. Loki studied the child in his arms. No one had ever shown him such trust and kindness so quickly after meeting. This girl gave him hope. Across the room, a few infants began to cry, thus creating a wave of crying panic that swept through the room. "Ah, it appears to be naptime," the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent stated, picking up a few of the smaller children. Taryn hesitantly climbed out of Loki's lap and scurried over to her designated mat. The God of Mischief helped move the other children to their spots. When none of them stopped crying he was more than offended. Coulson attempted to console them, but the deafening sobs continued. Loki sighed in exasperation – what had Frigga done when he and Thor were young and could not sleep? Ah yes, he remembered. He sat down in front of the crying children and began to sing. Even Coulson was speechless.
The god sang of young heroes, whom fought bravely, and of beautiful maidens, thrones, feasts, and of glorious purposes. Phil could tell when Loki's song turned to his own story; it was sad. Every child and infant in that room silently watched in awe as the song came to an end. The Trickster closed his eyes and took a deep breath – it had been quite a while since he had last sung.
"Wow, I mean, let's show our gratitude to…Loki," Coulson said as he attempted to regain composure – which was a rare problem for him. Some of the older children mumbled quiet thank-yous, but the younger ones seemed to have much more trouble. Coulson seemed worried that this would appear rude and was about to apologize when Loki raised his hand to stop him.
"No need, Agent Coulson, I need not their thanks but only for them to," he grinned mischievously, "say my name." The children seemed a bit confused. "Say my name," he said gently. A few of them almost managed it, and Loki raised his voice. "Say my name!" A few more said it, and again he raised his voice. "Say my name!" A collective 'Lo-key' was exclaimed throughout the room. Loki smiled. "Sleep well, young Midgardians," he said in a hushed voice. Fortunately, every child and infant fell asleep in less than a minute.
Back in his office, Nick Fury smirked as he watched the god watch over the small children. The Avengers had been right, Loki was actually being good. He shook his head – he'd have to do better on his subtle acts of revenge.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed, feel free to leave feedback, suggestions, requests, and the like! :D Stay awesome out there!